Grover's disease, also known as transient acantholytic dermatosis, is a transient skin disorder that consists of papulovesicular rash, such as small raised red lesions, on the skin of the chest and back. The rash can be a sudden onset of small papules and fragile vesicles with the formation of crusts and keratotic erosions (Weaver et al., Grover disease (transient acantholytic dermatosis), Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2009 September; 133(9):1490-4). It is a skin disorder seen mainly in males over the age of forty, and particularly among older white males.
The rash from Grover's disease can be extraordinarily itchy with the presence of small blisters containing a watery liquid. The itching may be severe and difficult to treat in some patients. The steroid creams (such as triamcinolone or clobetasol), antihistamines (such as diphenhydramine or hydroxyzine), tetracycline, or oral retinoids (such as acetretin, or isotretinoin) may provide temporary relief of the itching and inflammation. The evaluation of treatment of Grover's disease is difficult due to its spontaneous remittance and occasional fluctuant course with unknown pathogenesis.
In some conditions, photo-therapy may be effective to treat Grover's disease, including exposing the skin to controlled amounts of natural sunlight, ultraviolet A light (UVA, wavelength of 315-400 nm), or ultraviolet B light (UVB, wavelength of 280-315 nm). Unfortunately, exposure to light can sometimes intensify Grover's disease. Medium-dose UVA1 cold-light mono-photo-therapy containing a special filtering and cooling system has been tested for administration to treat Grover's disease. It did result in some improved skin status and was well-tolerated without the occurrence of acute side-effects. (Breuckmann et al., Medium-dose ultraviolet A1 phototherapy in transient acantholytic dermatosis (Grover's disease), J. Am Acad Dermatol, January 2005, vol 52, no 1, pages 169-170).
Various devices have been designed to provide photo-therapy for a variety of skin treatments or tanning. U.S. Pat. No. 6,896,693 (Sullivan, Photo-therapy Device) discloses a photo-therapy device containing arrays of light-emitting diodes (LED) allowing the therapeutic treatment to take place at a more comfortable distance from the patient's skin surface, including whole body treatment. U.S. Pat. No. 7,066,941 (Perricone, Apparatus for skin treatment) discloses a system comprising an array of LEDs having a wavelength of about 400-500 nm for treating aging or damaged skin. US 2012/0101557 A1 (Wagenaar Cacciola et al., Treatment apparatus and use thereof for treating psoriasis) discloses an apparatus comprising a radiation source emitting radiation and a radiator for guiding the emitted radiation to the parts of the skin which is affected by psoriasis. EP 2044943 A1 discloses a photo-therapy device comprising a matrix board with LED (red light and blue light wavelength) and a control system board for preventive treatment, rehabilitation and the treatment of many diseases. US 2008/0065056 A1 (Powell et al., Skin treatment phototherapy method) discloses a photo-therapy device with the design of a clamshell structure, pen shape, facial mask, or desk lamp comprising multi-color LEDs for emitting multiple wavelengths of light for treating skin conditions, including acne, wrinkle, rosacea, sun spots, inflammation, lesions, or skin blemishes. U.S. Pat. No. 9,463,333 B2 (Wagenaar Cacciola et al., Skin treatment device, lamp and use) discloses a device comprising lamps emitting UV-light and blue light (400-440 nm) for tanning and anti-acne.
While the prior art devices have some utility, there is no effective treatment for Grover's disease, skin rashes and other dermatological conditions. The present invention now provides a photo-therapy device and a method of use thereof that solves a need in the art for a successful treatment of such conditions.